


Defy the Odds

by dreamsofolicity



Series: Olicity Hiatus Fics [1]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, First Meetings, Fluff, Olicity Hiatus fic, On Hiatus
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-06-24
Packaged: 2018-11-07 11:06:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 21,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11057670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamsofolicity/pseuds/dreamsofolicity
Summary: “Our chances of meeting in a city with a population of over five hundred thousand people were small to begin with but the likelihood of meeting in another country entirely are infinitesimal.”“So we defy the odds,” he said.“Yeah we do,” she agreed, finally weaving her fingers through his. “I like that.”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first entry for the Olicity Hiatus Fic-A-Thon taking place on tumblr. I'm very nervous about characterization since it is an au but I'm posting it anyway because I can only get better if I try. Please be gentle with me since I am still very new to the fandom/pairing.
> 
> If you're a visual person like me, [here is Felicity's outfit](http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=223647966)

Felicity felt guilty. Not an overwhelming sense of shame but more like a vague itch at the edge of her mind. Because she could definitely be trying harder here. But it was hard to put in much effort when she’d rather use her valuable vacation days on things other than the expensive destination wedding of two friends from college that she barely kept in contact with anymore. Maybe it was just her bitterness talking, considering that her intended plus one decided to end their relationship two weeks before they were supposed to board their flight. But her pride didn’t let her admit that quite yet. So here she was, an embittered yet remorseful twenty-something sipping on a drink with far too little alcohol in it while watching everyone around her have the time of their lives. It was only a matter of time before someone in the beachside bar decided to brave the aura of utter disinterest she must have been exuding. She just didn’t expect that someone to be quite so familiar.

“You look like you’d rather be anywhere but here.”

Felicity sighed, preparing herself to inform the poor hopeful soul of how disinterested she was. Then her eyes fell on a muscular body covered in what looked like a very expensive suit. Following the buttons of his white shirt upward, she inwardly applauded him for the lack of tie that allowed a few of those buttons to remain open. Stubble covered a strong jaw and surrounded full lips that were lifted into a bit of a smirk. Her eyes flashed up to his, the audacity of his confidence sending a rush of annoyance through her. That was when she realized that his very blue eyes were very familiar. Standing before her was none other than Oliver Queen. Of all the places Felicity might have met him, an island in the middle of the Caribbean didn’t really occur to her. Though this certainly seemed like his scene. Or at least it seemed like a place the playboy of old would be found at. But, much to the disappointment of the press and single women, Oliver seemed to actually find his maturity about a year ago and hadn’t been seen on the party circuit ever since. If anything, that fact made it even stranger that he’d be here, looking at her with concern as she stared blankly back at him in silence.

“I would,” Felicity finally blurted out, realizing that he was waiting for her to say something. “Rather be anywhere else, I mean. Not that this isn’t a nice place. It is. But it’s not really my scene, you know? I was somewhat unwillingly brought here by a rather demanding bridal party. Which is funny because I’m not even in the bridal party so I’m not sure why I’m partying with them. Of course I’m not partying _with_ them since they’re over there and I’m standing here. By the bar. With you. I mean not with you. Because I don’t know you. But I’m standing here and you’re standing there, listening to me babble. Which I will stop doing now.”

She finally managed to snap her mouth closed, taking a deep breath as she counted down in her head. To her relief, Oliver looked more amused than anything else at her stream of words. Felicity, however, wanted nothing more than to find a quick escape. Instead of outright running away, she drank the rest of her nearly virgin cocktail in three nervous gulps.

“I don’t like weddings either,” Oliver said, leaning close to her as if he was imparting some grave secret.

Felicity was certain that in his life of old money and pretension, not liking weddings was a scandal in itself. When he huffed a near laugh, she realized with a hot flush in her cheeks that she must have said that aloud. Maybe the drink had more alcohol in it than she initially thought.

“See, I would describe it as a life of gross riches and pomposity but what you said works too,” he said with a slight smile. “I guess I don’t have to introduce myself.”

“Do you ever?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Only when people pretend like they don’t know who I am in the effort to flatter me when I eventually do introduce myself,” he told her.

“Well it’s a good thing that I hate pretending,” Felicity said, sticking out her hand. “Felicity Smoak.”

He looked slightly surprised as he shook her hand, as if he expected her to insult him again.

“Just to put us on even ground,” she warned him before retracting her hand.

Oliver nodded solemnly before glancing down at her empty glass.

“What are you drinking?” he asked as he turned to wave down the bartender.

“Something sugary,” Felicity said with a wrinkle of her nose. “And somewhat disgusting. I’m not really sure why I even drank it. I’m more of a wine person.”

Though she was just thinking aloud, she hardly expected Oliver to order something that sounded very expensive.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Felicity protested as the bartender hurried off.

“I figured I should buy you a drink as an apology for interrupting your one-woman party,” Oliver said with a shrug.

She couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips.

“Well I was having a great time,” Felicity sighed, leaning back against the bar.

“Yeah the angry scowl really showed it,” he said, gesturing to her face.

Her answering laugh took her by surprise. It wasn’t until now that she realized he’d actually managed to talk her into a conversation when her initial intent was to tell him to hit the road.

“I thought this wasn’t your scene anymore,” Felicity said, gesturing around.

Though she didn’t know him personally, the Oliver of before would probably have hit on every other girl in the room before approaching her. Not that she wasn’t pretty. Felicity had a good idea of how good she looked in the magenta dress she was currently wearing. Not to mention that her heels made her legs look great. But that didn’t mean that she was anywhere close to his type, despite the blonde hair that she’d let out of her usual ponytail for the night.

“Yeah,” Oliver agreed, glancing around. “Unfortunately I can’t say the same for Tommy.”

Felicity’s eyes did a quick search through the crowd and fell on Tommy Merlyn himself charming a group of girls. She glanced back at Oliver just in time to see him sigh heavily as he stared off in the same direction.

“Careful,” she warned, bringing his attention back to her. “I believe I have the monopoly on miserable spoilsport here.”

“Or we can agree to suffer together,” Oliver suggested as the bartender chose that moment to return with their drinks.

“I’ll drink to that,” Felicity decided, lifting her glass.

He nodded, knocking his whiskey against her wine lightly. As she expected, it tasted exquisite. She hummed appreciatively, hoping it was enough of a compliment to Oliver for his good taste. He seemed satisfied enough by her reaction. Before either of them could say anything else, the music suddenly turned up louder. Apparently the setting of the sun meant that the real party could start. Felicity was still in no mood for it, staring around darkly as she drank her wine. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Oliver leaned closer to her to speak.

“I know a quiet place,” he said, giving her an apologetic look.

She hesitated, glancing across the crowd at the group of women that she came with. They’d surely notice if she disappeared, though they didn’t really seem to care that she wasn’t around at the moment.

“What the hell?” she muttered to herself before finishing off the rest of her wine.

These were her damn summer vacation days. The least she could do was try to have a good time and so far the only person who’d managed to bring a smile to her face was Oliver. Taking his offered arm, she let him lead her out of the bar and across the street. To her surprise, he brought her to a small cafe.

“This wasn’t really what I was expecting when you suggested a quieter place,” Felicity said once they ordered and found a table on the small patio.

Oliver exhaled slowly, though he didn’t look surprised.

“My reputation precedes me.”

“Not so much anymore,” she assured him.

That small smile reappeared on his face just as the waitress brought their coffees. As Felicity sipped on her drink, she couldn’t help but stare at him. However she expected this night to go, finding herself in a cafe with Oliver did not factor into any of her hypotheticals.

“You live in Starling City, don’t you?” he asked.

“Guilty as charged,” Felicity nodded over her cappuccino. “And in the interest of full disclosure, I should probably tell you that I used to work for your family’s company.”

Oliver didn’t look as surprised or bothered as she expected, much to her relief.

“The coincidences keep piling up,” he said.

“I’d like to take this chance to remind you that you came up to me, not the other way around,” Felicity said, making sure that he did not think that she was a stalkerish former employee.

“Duly noted,” Oliver said with a nod of his own. “What do you do now?”

“I work for an IT consulting firm. It’s more of a learning opportunity than I would have had at QC, no offense. I want to start my own business one day,” she said.

Oliver nodded, looking more impressed than insulted by her career choice, much to her relief. Felicity didn’t have to ask what he did. The nightclub that he started with Tommy Merlyn a few years ago was bringing in more business than ever and was consistently named as _the_ hottest spot in Starling City. Felicity had never been to Verdant herself but she knew a friend of a friend who managed to get on the list and who boasted that it was all everyone said it was and more. It wasn’t really a surprise, considering that two of the most notorious partiers in the city owned it.

“Your sister is going to Stanford, right?” Felicity asked, internally wincing at her topic choice.

Thankfully, Oliver brightened visibly and nodded. Clearly bringing up Thea Queen was a good idea. Felicity made a note of that before speaking again.

“How does she like college?” she said.

“More than I ever did,” Oliver told her.

Felicity didn’t laugh, though she was tempted. It was common knowledge that Oliver and higher education never really went hand-in-hand. Looking at this older, somewhat more mature version of the man, she briefly wondered if he regretted taking such a casual stance on life back then. It certainly wasn’t a question she would be asking him.

“Is your favorite color green?” she asked, changing the subject.

Oliver blinked at her with surprise before nodding.

“How did you know?” he asked.

“Verdant,” Felicity said simply.

“Well Tommy ruled out calling it Queens,” Oliver said with a laugh. “He thought we’d attract a different kind of crowd.”

Felicity snorted into her cup before taking a long drink. Though she didn’t know Tommy Merlyn, it wasn’t hard to envision that conversation between the two friends.

“I like it. It’s unique,” she decided.

“I opened it to piss my parents off,” Oliver deadpanned.

Felicity stared at him, taken aback by the open honesty.

“That doesn’t surprise me,” she finally said.

He didn’t look bothered by her response, nodding in agreement.

“They were trying to push me into working for the company,” Oliver said.

“Why didn’t you want to?” Felicity asked, hoping that it didn’t seem like prying.

“I was a dick,” he said truthfully, smirking slightly. “But I also wanted to be something other than Robert Queen’s son. At least if I could add club owner to my list of achievements, that’d be one thing that he didn’t do.”

“You mean other than peeing on a cop?” the word slipped from her mouth before she could stop them.

Oliver choked on his coffee, looking at her with wide eyes.

“Yeah, other than that,” he said, picking up a napkin to wipe at his mouth.

She hid her grimace with another long drink before blurting out the next thing that came to her mind.

“I almost got arrested for hacking in college,” Felicity said.

He looked at her with raised eyebrows at the confession.

“Almost?”

“I managed to cover my tracks just in time,” she said, remembering how close of a call it was.

Oliver looked at her appreciatively for her subject change.

“When is the wedding?”

It took Felicity a moment to catch up to what he was asking about.

“Day after tomorrow,” she answered, adjusted her glasses.

“You’re going alone?” Oliver asked.

It was hard to force an easy smile on her face at the reminder of her ex’s sudden change of heart when it came to this trip and their relationship. They’d only been official for two months but she couldn’t deny that it hurt to watch him walk away so easily.

“Maybe I like lonely vacations,” she said, barely keeping her lip from wobbling.

Unfortunately she couldn’t help the slight hitch in her voice and Oliver was too sharp to miss it.

“Well I’ll be here for the next few days,” he said.

Felicity’s eyes widened and she stared at him, unable to quite believe what she was hearing. Was Oliver Queen really offering to keep her pathetic self company? Didn’t he have a thousand better things to do? Come to think of it, why was he on this island at all? At that moment, a crowd of college-aged girls poured into the cafe, clearly looking for a way to sober up. Instead of asking one of the many questions on the tip of her tongue, Felicity slowly set her cup down and picked up her purse. Oliver looked almost disappointed and she quickly realized that he might have thought that she was about to walk away.

“I was just going to suggest that we find a quieter quiet place,” she said, nodding at the group of coeds.

A slow smile formed on his face and he nodded, standing up along with her. They barely stepped outside when a black town car pulled up to the curb. Felicity glanced at Oliver with surprise before sliding into the backseat once he opened the door for her. The driver didn’t even need instructions once they were settled. She had a pretty good idea of where they might be going. It was tempting to inform Oliver that he could buy her an entire case of expensive wine and it still wouldn’t convince her to sleep with him tonight. But she remained quiet, deciding to give him more credit than that. It was hard to see all of the beauty of the island at night but Felicity still gazed out the window at the passing buildings, catching a glimpse of the dark ocean every so often. When Oliver reached over and brushed his hand over hers, a questioning look on his face, she tilted her head towards him and smiled.

“You never said why you’re here,” she said, her voice low and quiet.

“Tommy’s idea,” Oliver sighed, brushing his thumb back and forth over her knuckles as if it was a habit.

He gestured over his shoulder, clearly referring to the bar they’d rescued one another from.

“You came all the way here because your friend wanted to party?” Felicity asked.

“I felt like I owed it to him,” Oliver said with a shrug.

She didn’t push him. It was clear that something else was going on that led him to agree to this trip with Tommy but it wasn’t Felicity’s business if Oliver didn’t want to talk about it. Flipping her hand over, she skimmed her fingers over the palm of his hand. It was hard to wrap her mind around how easy this felt. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that Oliver would have such a calming effect. When they spoke, his gaze was centered on her and her alone. It was fairly intense but she was quickly learning to accept the fact that Oliver was not at all like the media liked to portray him. Lifting her eyes, she saw that he was looking out of the window this time. His profile was as flawless as the rest of him. When she let out a small laugh, he looked over at her quizzically as her cheeks colored at being caught staring.

“What?” Oliver asked.

“Coincidences,” Felicity said with an amused shake of her head. “Our chances of meeting in a city with a population over five hundred thousand people were small to begin with but the likelihood of meeting in another country entirely are infinitesimal.”

“So we defy the odds,” he said.

“Yeah we do,” she agreed, finally weaving her fingers through his. “I like that.”

They didn’t talk much for the rest of the ride. It was easy to see when the buildings thinned out and turned into thick foliage. As the car finally turned into a long driveway, she peered out of the windshield at what awaited them. The sight came as no surprise but she still shook her head with a huff of laughter once the car came to a stop and Oliver climbed out first.

“Of course he would rent out a private villa,” she said to herself as he rounded the car to open her door for her.

His hand appeared in her vision and she took it, allowing him to help her out. Oliver didn’t let go, entwining their fingers once more as he led her into the house. The inside was even more gorgeous than the outside. Felicity tried not to look too impressed. Oliver certainly didn’t need that particular ego boost. After a short stop in the fully stocked kitchen to grab a bottle of wine, a corkscrew, and two glasses, he took her straight through the house and out onto a terrace. The beach was mere steps from the villa and she could both see and hear the waves lapping against the shore. The view was breathtaking.

“What do you think?” Oliver asked.

In anyone else’s mouth, the words might have been arrogant. But he sounded genuinely curious and partly concerned that he’d misread the entire situation. In response, Felicity slipped off her shoes, took the bottle of wine and the corkscrew from his hand, and made her way to the pool. Lowering herself carefully, she dipped one foot into the water to test the temperature before submerging both legs up to the knee.

“You’ve got yourself quite the setup here, Mr. Queen,” Felicity said, concentrating on opening the wine.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him set the glasses down only to strip off his suit jacket and roll the sleeves of his dress shirt up to his elbows. If she snuck an appreciative look his way, absolutely no one could blame her. She was partly surprised when he joined her on the ground, though he didn’t put his feet in the water.

“I like the peace here,” he admitted, holding the glasses out so that she could pour them both a generous amount. “There’s not enough of that in the city.”

“I like the stars,” Felicity said, tilting her head back to look at the dark sky.

“There’s not enough of those back home either,” Oliver agreed, peering up as well.

They sat there in a companionable silence for a long stretch of time, sipping on wine and enjoying the view. When Felicity felt Oliver’s gaze on her, she returned it steadily.

“Why does this feel so easy?” he asked, voicing her thoughts from earlier.

She didn’t know the answer any more now than she did then. With a shrug of her shoulders, she licked her lips free of wine before speaking in a jokingly self-assured tone.

“I’m just good company, I guess.”

“That’s true,” Oliver said, sounding entirely serious.

Felicity blinked several times, not expecting him to agree.

“You sure I’m not just some weird, stray girl that you feel sorry for?” she asked, glancing away from him as she tried to sound as casual as possible.

“Well...now that you mention it…”

Felicity’s head snapped back around to him only to see his eyes shining with amusement. With a scoff, she flicked water at him with his foot, earning a well-aimed splash in return. With a laugh, she wiped the water from her face and resumed treading her feet lazily in the water.

“You’ve done a really good job of not talking about the real reason that you’re here, you know,” she said.

Though she was curious, Felicity also had the feeling that Oliver had something weighing on him that he hadn’t mentioned. When he tensed up, she knew that she was right. But she felt guilty for bringing up again and started to backtrack but he beat her to it.

“It really is a last hurrah,” he said, swirling the wine in his glass. “I’m taking an high level position in my dad’s company in a few weeks. With the workload and all the shit I’m going to have to figure out on the fly, I’ll only be able to make occasional visits to Verdant.”

“Wow,” Felicity said.

If the media was to be believed, Oliver had made it clear that he never wanted to have a position in Queen Consolidated. It was hard not to wonder what changed his mind.

“What are you going to be doing?” she asked.

“I guess we’ll find out,” Oliver said.

Though he tried to sound nonchalant about it, Felicity could hear his uncertainty as well.

“Why are you doing it?”

That question seemed like it was a bit harder for him to answer, if his hard swallow was anything to go by. Felicity waited patiently, sipping at her wine as he gathered his thoughts.

“My mom and dad have been pushing it for a while. They always wanted me involved somehow. That’s why they kept paying for school everytime I dropped out. I think that they kept hoping it would stick,” Oliver said.

“Well you’re a grown man with a fairly successful business,” Felicity said, playing the devil’s advocate. “You can always say no.”

“I really can’t.”

She frowned at him, not liking the sound of that. If she’d played it safe and gone with the family business, she’d be a cocktail waitress in Vegas. As much as she respected Robert Queen for the business he’d managed to build and keep up as one of the most successful in the country, it didn’t sit well with her that he was seemingly forcing his son into his role.

“You don’t want to do it,” she said with certainty.

“It’s the last thing that I want to do,” Oliver said honestly, a bit of dark humor in his voice. “I never wanted to be like my father. I used to get so angry if someone even suggested that I follow in his footsteps.”

“So why?” Felicity questioned, sincerely hoping that she wasn’t overstepping her bounds.

Oliver hesitated, a hint of sadness flickering over his face.

“He has cancer.”

Felicity’s jaw dropped and she stared at him with wide eyes. Of all the things she expected, that possibility didn’t even enter her mind.

“Oliver,” she breathed.

He looked at her with a heavy gaze. It was clear that this was something that he hadn’t even had the chance to come to terms with and here she was, forcing the truth out of him with her questioning. Guilt settled in her stomach and made her feel sick.

“I’m-I’m so sorry,” she stammered.

“Don’t be,” Oliver said, his hand reaching out to ghost over her knee.

Her body betrayed her, warming immediately at the contact. This was definitely not the time to feel overly attracted to Oliver Queen.

“I’m trying to get used to saying it. If I shut it away in my mind, it makes it less real and I can’t afford that,” he said honestly, his thumb tracing the underside of her knee as if it was an unconscious habit.

The soft touch sent tremors throughout her body and she hoped more than anything that he didn’t notice her small shudder. Felicity reached down, catching his hand in hers before he drove her to start babbling again. Oliver didn’t hesitate to weave his fingers through hers.

“The doctors say that he’ll probably live longer if he stops working so much. That’s why I’m taking a job at QC. He needs to know that it’ll be taken care of. I can’t stand by and watch his company suffer through a hostile takeover while he’s in the middle of chemo.”

“I understand,” Felicity said, feeling even worse for bringing up at all.

Oliver nodded, swallowing hard again before letting out a huff of near laughter.

“That just got really serious,” he said, tugging at his collar with his free hand. “Sorry about that.”

Felicity waved him off, refusing to let him feel bad for what he just told her. Part of her was honored that he’d trust her with that information even though he barely knew her. There was a reason that Robert Queen’s condition, whatever it was, wasn’t public yet. In the wrong hands, it could be a very valuable secret. Felicity felt the need to prove to him that his trust, however surprising, wasn’t misplaced.

“I wasn’t supposed to come here alone,” she blurted out before really thinking it through. “My ex broke up with me a few weeks ago. So I’m that bitter person at the wedding who is cursing the happiness of everyone around her. That’s why my friend, the bride, invited me out tonight. She didn’t want me to mope alone for another night.”

Oliver looked somewhat relieved by her admission.

“I guess she got her wish,” Felicity said, squeezing his hand lightly.

He managed a small smile, an impressive feat considering the solemn atmosphere that had settled over their conversation.

“I’m glad that I walked up to you in that bar, Felicity Smoak,” Oliver said, reaching out to tuck her hair behind her ear. “You’re remarkable.”

She grinned, leaning into the touch.

“I’m glad I didn’t tell you to go away like I planned,” Felicity admitted.

He let out a laugh and she swore in that moment that there was nothing more beautiful than a happy Oliver Queen, great ocean view be damned.

* * *

It wasn’t her usual alarm that awoke her, but rather the feeling of warmth and a heavy weight across her waist. Blinking several times, she winced at the sunlight that poured through the windows unimpeded by any curtains. It didn’t take long for her to figure out that she wasn’t in her hotel room. A bit of blind groping caused her hand to hit something solid beside her just as she realized that the aforementioned weight was an arm around her torso, holding her close to a muscled form. All at once, everything came rushing back. The bar, a smile, the taste of a great cappuccino, the sound of waves, a beautiful laugh.

Her eyes finally flew open, staring at the white ceiling above her in shock. The person next to her was most definitely Oliver Queen. Slowly turning her head, she caught sight of her glasses lying on the nightstand. Once she placed them back on her face, her mind began to clear along with her vision. The last thing she remembered, they’d wandered inside of the villa so that she could see the place. Oliver mostly trailed after her as she wandered, commenting on random things like the vaulted ceiling in the den or the gorgeous art in one of the bedrooms. When they wound up in _his_ room, she’d plopped on his bed and complimented him for choosing a place with such comfortable beds. They’d fallen back into an easy conversation after that and she must have fallen asleep in the middle of it. She grimaced, praying to whatever deity might be listening that she didn’t drool on Oliver at any point in the night.

Slowly slipping out from beneath his arm, her bare feet hit the ground softly and she crept her way into his bathroom, hoping that he wouldn’t wake up. Her hair was a mess but she knew that there was a ponytail holder in her purse, wherever that may be. Felicity thought she remembered setting it down in the kitchen when Oliver got the wine. Her makeup was slightly streaked but it was nothing that a few swipes with her fingers didn’t fix. Though her dress was rumpled, it wasn’t walk of shame worthy, which was a relief. When she turned to leave the bathroom, the sight of Oliver still fast asleep on the bed drew her up short.

He looked peaceful and the sunlight on his face softened his features, making him look like he belonged in a painting. It was tempting to brush her fingers over his cheek or run them through his hair. Felicity stamped down the urge to do either, creeping out of the room once she found her heels discarded at the end of the bed. As she fought with herself over whether to find a way back to her part of the island, she heard the sound of movement in the kitchen. There was no avoiding the room so she hoped that she might sneak in and out without whoever it was noticing her. That plan was shot to hell as soon as she rounded the corner and came face-to-face with Tommy Merlyn.

“Hey,” he said, shooting her an easy grin.

It was almost hard to place him without at least two girls hanging off of his arms. He was wearing a henley with the sleeves pushed up. Felicity noted with surprise that he was mixing eggs in a bowl, getting ready to cook them on the stovetop.

“Hi,” she said quietly, her cheeks burning as she crossed the room to grab her purse.

“I’m stretching the limits of my cooking skills to make breakfast,” Tommy said, clearly unbothered by the slightly awkward situation.

Felicity eyed him as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail, smoothing down any flyaways once it was fixed up and out of her face.

“I’m not sure that…”

“Oliver will wake up as soon as he smells it,” Tommy continued on as if she hadn’t spoken. “That guy can eat more than anyone in the mornings. You’ll be surprised by how much he shovels down.”

She stared at him, aware that she was probably gaping.

“How do you like ‘em?”

Felicity snapped her mouth shut and shrugged noncommittally, realizing that there was probably no way of getting out of this breakfast.

“However you’re making them,” she said.

“Great,” he shot her another smile before turning to make up the scrambled eggs.

Felicity turned away, pulling a glass out to get herself some water. They hadn’t finished off the wine from last night and she’d certainly be willing to do it now if it wouldn’t loosen her lips even more than usual. Sure enough, it didn’t take long before they heard the shuffle of bare feet across the floorboards. Felicity was already blushing again by the time she saw Oliver, his clothes and hair as rumpled as her own. His eyes fell on Tommy first before moving to her. The smile he gave her caused her chest to warm and she couldn’t help but respond with a bright smile of her own.

“I see you met Tommy,” he said, his voice rough with sleep.

Felicity felt a surge of desire at the sound of it.

“He’s making eggs,” she said with a nod, cursing the breathiness of her own voice.

“If you two want to make yourselves useful, there’s some mango just waiting to be cut up,” Tommy said, nodding to the fruit that was sitting on the island.

Felicity was relieved to do something with her hands. Once she found a cutting board and a knife, she made herself busy with cutting very symmetrical squares. Oliver took the chance to start up the coffeemaker, officially making him a hero in her eyes. They all worked in an easy silence and she was relieved that Tommy didn’t seem like the type to pry into exactly what they got up to the night before. Not that they got up to anything, but it was nice of him not to question them. Any of Felicity’s friends wouldn’t have had near the restraint. When they found themselves at the breakfast table, Felicity was surprised to see that it was just set for two.

“You aren’t joining us?” Oliver asked, noticing the same thing.

“Oh no,” Tommy said with a shake of his head, walking out of the kitchen with a little bit of everything set out on a plate, including two glasses of mimosa. “I’ve got my own companion waiting for me.”

He clapped Oliver on the shoulder and shot her a wink before walking out of the room whistling jovially. Felicity stared at the doorway, quite unsure of what to make of Tommy Merlyn.

“Subtlety has never been his strong suit,” Oliver said.

“No kidding,” Felicity agreed before cutting her eyes over to him.

He was staring at her, an almost soft look on his face that caused her heart to flip in her chest.

“Should we eat?” Felicity asked, her voice wavering only slightly.

Oliver nodded, spooning a generous portion of eggs and fruit onto his plate. As it turned out, Tommy was actually really great at making eggs, a realization she’d never expected to have. If anyone told her before this trip that she’d find herself eating food that one billionaire cooked with another billionaire that she’d spent the night with, she’d probably recommend that they get a psych evaluation. But this was definitely real and Felicity wasn’t quite sure if she could wrap her mind around it. When Oliver spoke, breaking the silence and pulling her from her thoughts, she lifted her head to meet his gaze.

“Last night was…” he trailed off, clearly searching for the right word.

“I don’t really know how to describe it either,” Felicity said, letting him off the hook. “There are too many words and somehow they don’t feel like enough.”

Oliver nodded in agreement, looking relieved that she understood.

“I don’t think it’s supposed to be like this,” she told him.

“Says who?” he asked.

Felicity could only smile in response because he was right. They continued eating in that same comfortable silence that they enjoyed the night before. Once they finished and carried their plates back into the kitchen, Oliver turned towards her with an inspired look.

“Do you want company for the wedding tomorrow?” he asked.

She blinked at him, wondering if he’d ever stop taking her by surprise.

“What?” was all that she could manage.

“You said that you were supposed to have a plus one. You shouldn’t have to suffer through it alone,” Oliver said.

As sweet as his offer was, Felicity found herself shaking her head once she recovered from its unexpectedness. When Oliver’s face fell slightly, she rushed to explain herself.

“You came here to be with Tommy,” she reminded him gently, reaching out to take his hand. “Your last hurrah, remember? You two should go skydiving or something stupidly risky like that.”

He looked amused now that he understood her reasoning.

“No skydiving for you?” Oliver asked.

“No,” Felicity said plainly with a shake of her head.

It wasn’t hard for her to find a stance on that. She wasn’t willing to give up the comfort that came with her two feet planted firmly on the ground no matter how good Oliver looked when he tilted his head to the side and gave her a smile worthy of some award.

“Do I have to remind you that we live in the same city?” Felicity asked, mindlessly stroking her fingers over his palm. “Our time isn’t restricted to this island. That’s if you want to see me when we get back to Starling City. I guess this can be our summer vacation fling. Not that this is a fling. I mean all we’ve done is talk and hold hands. There hasn’t even been a kiss. I don’t expect a kiss of course. But I wouldn’t be opposed to it either. In fact, I’d definitely be in favor of a kiss. That doesn’t mean you have to give me one though. Please, for the love of everything, shut me up.”

Her plea was met with open ears and before she knew it, Oliver was pressing the softest of kisses to her lips. It didn’t last near long enough for her. As he pulled away, he let out a low laugh at her breathless, “Thank you.”

“We have today,” Oliver said.

Felicity looked at him warily, though she was still flustered from the brief kiss. She was ready to bring up Tommy again but Oliver spoke first.

“He’ll be...occupied for a while,” he said.

Felicity didn’t really want to think too hard about that, instead choosing to push up on her toes to kiss him again. It was nothing like their gentle kiss. Oliver completely flooded her senses with every press of his lips and sweep of his tongue. His fingers skimmed over her skin like silk, setting her nerves aflame in the wake of his touch. When he pulled away, Felicity shook her head, determined not to let it end. When she tugged him back to her with her hands fisted in his wrinkled dress shirt, he lifted her up onto the counter nearly effortlessly, pulling a surprised squeak from her lips. Oliver’s hands slipped just beneath her dress, tracing patterns over her thighs as his eyes flitted over her face.

“You’re beautiful,” he said, brushing her hair behind her ear.

Felicity flushed at the compliment and he smiled, his thumb sweeping over her cheek.

“So what did you have in mind for the day?” she asked.

“That depends on your answer to this question.”

Felicity tilted her head to the side questioningly.

“Do you...like butter on your popcorn?” Oliver said.

Fifteen minutes later, Felicity was curled up on the couch next to Oliver wearing borrowed sweatpants and a t-shirt.

“I can’t believe we’re on the coast of a beautiful tropical island with countless fun things we could be doing and instead we’re sitting on a couch about to watch a movie,” she said with a shake of her head. “And this is coming from a person who celebrates all things indoor.”

“Who says this isn’t fun?” Oliver asked, picking up the remote from the coffee table.

Felicity hummed, leaning back against the couch with her legs curled up beneath her.

“If I tell anyone about this, and I’m not saying that I will, but if I do, I will definitely tell them that Oliver Queen wanted to watch a romcom,” she informed him.

His arm wrapping around her, pulling her into his side. Felicity settled there easily, tucking her head into his shoulder.

“What makes you think that anyone will believe you?” Oliver whispered into her hair.

Felicity stilled, narrowing her eyes.

“You are an evil person,” she accused.

Oliver simply laughed in response, pressing play on the remote.

* * *

Later, when Felicity was sitting in an uncomfortable chair watching an uncle who got ordained online drone on and on about the right sort of marriage, she would close her eyes and imagine being back on that couch with Oliver. And when her alarm went off at an ungodly hour the next morning so that she could be at the airport in time for her flight, she recalled what it was like to wake up in his arms. When she walked out into the lobby of her hotel tugging her suitcase behind her, the last thing that she expected was to see Oliver perched on one of the lounge chairs by the entrance.

“You know they call security on loiterers, right?” she asked as she walked towards him. “This place may not be as fortified as Queen Consolidated but I doubt they’d approve of any troublemakers.”

Oliver smiled as he stood.

“Are you calling me a troublemaker, Miss Smoak?”

“I’ve seen the tabloids, Mr. Queen. I think troublemaker is a mild word,” she said, sliding her hand into his when he held it out. “But seriously, you didn’t have to be here. I’m leaving in five minutes anyway.”

“I thought I’d give you a ride to the airport,” Oliver suggested.

Felicity raised one eyebrow up at him.

“You’re just going to ride with me to the airport?” she asked, trying to avoid outright saying that it was a ridiculous idea.

If she lived on the other side of the planet, it might have been a good plan. But Felicity was fairly certain that she lived no further than an hour away from the Queen mansion and that was with heavy traffic.

“It’s better than listening to Tommy grumble about how many tequila shots he took last night,” Oliver said.

“Now that I understand,” Felicity allowed with a nod. “But as difficult as it may be, you are going to have to learn to suffer through some boredom while your best friend suffers through his hangover. So go find yourself a nice cafe, drink a cappuccino for me, and I’ll see you back in Starling City.”

Oliver laughed at her self-confidence before tugging her in closer.

“Yes ma’am,” he said before slotting his lips over hers.

Felicity reached up, clutching at his simple t-shirt with her free hand as she responded eagerly. It wasn’t until they heard someone clearing their throat that they broke apart and saw an employee of the hotel looking at them disapprovingly. It was, after all, a family place and Oliver’s free hand was slipping dangerously far down her back.

“That’s it,” she whispered, looking up at him. “I’m officially upgrading you to hooligan for getting me involved in your shenanigans.”

Oliver grinned at her before stepping away, taking her suitcase from her hand.

“At least let me walk you to your car,” he offered.

“Permission granted,” Felicity said.

He managed to sneak three more kisses between the lobby and the taxi and Felicity found herself appreciating just how hands-on Oliver could be. It was something she was definitely willing to explore when they found themselves back in the same city again. Once he shut the door behind her, he waved goodbye as the taxi pulled away from the curb. Felicity stared out of the window at the passing island, knowing that no matter what happened when she got back to Starling City, at least she could say that her valuable vacation days weren’t completely wasted. It was that thought that had her smiling all the way to the ticket counter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love to hear what you think!
> 
>  
> 
> **tumblr -[dreamsofolicity](https://dreamsofolicity.tumblr.com/)  
> **  
>  twitter - [ogteamarrow](https://twitter.com/ogteamarrow)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once they return to Starling City, Felicity and Oliver find it slightly difficult to adjust.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't planning on continuing this fic but enough people showed interest that I changed my mind. I hope that you don't hate it. I didn't want to ruin a good thing but I really like how this chapter turned out.
> 
> There's an OC in this chapter, Felicity's friend, who I imagine as Aimee Garcia if you want to know that sort of thing.
> 
> If you are a visual person like me, [here is Felicity's gardens outfit](https://www.polyvore.com/chapter/set?id=223719279)

Starling City looked the exact same. Somehow Felicity expected it to look different. She assumed that it would change to reflect what her life underwent between the day she left and today. But, from the back of the cab that was taking her to her townhouse, Felicity couldn’t see any differences. Dusk had fallen over the city and though beautiful colors illuminated the skyline, it was one of the tallest buildings that immediately caught her eye. She hadn’t spared Queen Consolidated a single glance since she handed in her resignation over a year ago but now she couldn’t stop staring at it.

With a few hundred miles between her and everything that happened over the past few days, it was easy to feel like it was all just a dream or some vivid hallucination. But it had really happened. She really met Oliver Queen. She drank with Oliver Queen. She flirted with Oliver Queen. She slept with Oliver Queen. _In a very platonic way_ , Felicity reminded herself. Until it wasn’t platonic, because she kissed Oliver Queen. Many times. And if Felicity had her way, she’d do it again. Many more times. She inhaled deeply, ignoring the warmth that flooded her cheeks as she stared at the bold, lit-up **Q CONSOLIDATED** in the sky that seemed to tease her.

Even when she reached her house, paid off the driver, and pulled her suitcase up the stairs and into the elevator, she still felt like she was riding the high of her vacation. Her skin was just as pale as when she left and there was no salacious story to satisfy her mother when she eventually called. Donna Smoak would definitely be disappointed if she found out that her daughter spent the night in a billionaire’s bed and not one article of clothing was removed. It wasn’t until she closed her door, turned on her lights, and stood alone in her empty apartment that reality started to nudge in at the edge of her mind.

No, Starling City had not changed. So what if everything else stayed the same as well? The thought chased the high from her system as she sighed heavily. Leaving her suitcase by the door, she headed straight for her bathroom to take a very long, sobering shower.

* * *

When she woke up the next morning, the first thing that she missed was the sound of waves. They managed to tug her from sleep peacefully without making her want to scream. Her alarm, however, gave her the rudest awakening and she barely restrained herself from throwing it against the wall. Sitting up, she glowered at the empty space in her bed, quickly realizing that it wasn’t just the waves she missed. Shaking her head, Felicity dismissed that thought. She was not the kind of girl who fell to pieces over a guy she met less than a week ago, even if his name was Oliver Queen.

“Pull yourself together,” she said determinedly before shoving her blankets away to stand.

Felicity was not one for sitting idly. She had enough vacation days to be able to adjust back to being home but she didn’t take the chance. Her routine was her friend. That, and she couldn’t sit around letting her thoughts wander back to that private villa on the coast. So she dressed in her armor, otherwise known as a navy sheath dress, put on her trusty nude heels, and smoothed her hair back in her usual ponytail. Once she finished off with her makeup, she stowed her tablet in her work bag and headed out to face reality.

It wasn’t until she had her favorite cappuccino in one hand and her phone in the other as she walked into her workplace that she was firmly brought right back out of reality and thrown into the strange in-between that existed in the aftermath of her vacation. Once she waved hello to the security guard, she passed the waiting area. Her eyes flickered up to the television mounted on the wall briefly, stopping short only when it occurred to her exactly what she’d seen. Turning around slowly, she blinked up at the television several times without really comprehending what she was seeing.

“The Queen heir is seen here returning from a trip abroad amidst rumors that his father, Robert Queen, will be significantly scaling back his duties at Queen Consolidated in the coming months. Twitter is abuzz with theories, most of them tracing back to Oliver Queen himself. Concern over who will take over Queen Consolidated when the current CEO retires has been building over the past several years. A source at the company is adamant that Robert Queen is not handing over the reins to his son and that this information is being taken entirely out of context. It isn’t clear how this will affect Queen Consolidated’s stock. More on this story later.”

Felicity watched with a slightly open mouth a clip of Oliver exiting the airport with a blank look on his face, a twin to the one that Tommy wore. Reporters on every side were shouting questions and pushing in. She couldn’t help but remember the look on Oliver’s face when he told her about his father’s condition. The heavy sadness was hard to forget. He didn’t deserve to be accosted like this. He didn’t deserve to have to end his time with Tommy so early. Everything else was forgotten as she watched him rush into the backseat of a town car, questions about his qualifications, his past, and his father chasing him the whole way.

“Look who’s back!”

Felicity turned with wide eyes.. The speaker was none other than one of her best friends, Danielle Araujo. She was the Director of Sales at Coeus Technologies where Felicity worked as well. Her eyes flickered over her and looked disappointed. She knew that the cause was her lack of tan. Forcing herself to push Oliver to the back of her mind, she stepped forward and embraced her with a small smile, careful not to spill her coffee all over her blouse.

“You have to tell me everything,” Dani said, hooking an arm through hers to walk her to the elevator. “What were you watching back there?”

“Just seeing if I missed out on anything while I was gone,” Felicity said with as casual a shrug as she could manage.

“You know exactly how it was. Starling City didn’t shine nearly as bright without the incandescent Felicity Smoak within it’s borders.”

She groaned, shaking her head at her exaggeration.

“No one noticed that I was gone, did they?” Felicity asked.

“Are you kidding? The place barely runs without you.”

She didn’t believe her. Though Felicity was an extremely valuable employee, this wasn’t like Queen Consolidated. Coeus was a fairly new company but the founder was strict about who he hired. He wasn’t about to settle for mediocrity so Felicity wasn’t a hundred times smarter than everyone in her department. She might have been only _ten_ times smarter than all of them.

“How was your trip?” Dani asked as the elevator dinged and opened to admit them both.

“Not bad,” Felicity said, letting go of her to press the button for their floor.

“An ostentatious waste of time and money that you’d rather walk over a hallway of broken glass than attend?”

She laughed as she recalled that those were her exact words just before she gave in and RSVP’d. Felicity might have hated the idea of going to the wedding but there was a guilt complex buried deep in her mind that flared up every so often.

“I’m not sure it was that bad,” she said, before taking a long drink of coffee.

Dani scoffed, shaking her head.

“You know, if it were anyone else, this would be a prime chance to grab a drink tonight so that you can spill the beans. You disappoint me, Smoak. You have no beans.”

She frowned over at her.

“I have beans,” Felicity argued.

“What beans do you have?” Dani asked just as they reached their floor.

She sighed, weighing the pros and cons of spilling. On the one hand, she wanted what happened with Oliver to be hers and hers alone. On the other, it was tempting to have someone that knew her well, who she could discuss everything with. As the doors slid open, she took another long drink off coffee as she made up her mind.

“I met Oliver Queen,” Felicity finally said before walking out with her head held high.

Logan, their receptionist, greeted Felicity with a warm smile. Dani was following her but she hadn’t said a single word. As she wound through the desks of the technicians to her own small but private office, she greeted everyone and smiled as they welcomed her back. Her friend waited until she was behind her desk with her purse set to the side and her messages in her hand before saying something.

“Oliver Queen?”

“Yep,” Felicity said without even looking up, reading through each message individually.

“The Oliver Queen?” Dani said.

“The one and only,” she confirmed.

“You met him?”

“I did.”

Silence filled the air, stretching for a long few moments as Felicity waited for her to grasp the concept. Just as she finished sorting her messages and took a seat in her chair, Dani finally spoke again.

“You met Oliver fucking Queen? Billionaire? Bad boy? Sex on legs? And you’re trying to convince me that your trip was ‘not bad’ like I’m a damn infant who doesn’t understand exactly what ‘meeting’ Oliver Queen means?” she said, doing air quotes and everything.

“It wasn’t like that,” Felicity sighed, finally looking up. “And I’d appreciate if you would keep it down because while I trust that you will keep this between us, the twenty technicians out there probably don’t feel the same sense of loyalty and I happen to know that at least three of them tweet way too much.”

“Why would you want to keep it a secret that you met Oliver Queen?” Dani wondered.

Felicity gave her a look before picking up her phone and opening the web browser. Not five seconds after she googled Oliver’s name, seven major news articles popped up that had been posted in the last thirty minutes alone.

“That’s why,” she said, showing Dani the screen.

“You really think that Oliver Queen’s female companions are news anymore?” her friend asked.

Ignoring the use of “female companions” that sounded utterly creepy, Felicity put her phone down.

“I think that I don’t want to be the ‘mysterious blonde’ who spent the night with him on an island in the Caribbean. I definitely don’t want to be Felicity Smoak who spent the night with him on an island in the Caribbean.”

Dani’s eyebrows shot up and she didn’t hesitate to take one of the seats on the other side of the desk.

“I was totally wrong. Your beans are definitely spillable,” she said with a burgeoning grin.

Felicity shook her head.

“It’s not what you think. I mean, yes I slept with him but I didn’t _sleep_ with him and there is a very important distinction there. Not that it will matter to TMZ if they get the information which I didn’t even think of until five minutes ago when I saw that his arrival at an airport somehow made the national news. Not that I would make the national news but I don’t really want to make any kind of news.”

“Honey I don’t really think that is what put him on the national news,” Dani said.

She was right, obviously, but Felicity was finally doing only a small part of the freaking out that she hadn’t let herself do earlier.

“We are going out tonight for drinks and you _will_ tell me everything. I’d make you do it right now if we weren’t on the clock. Prepare yourself, Smoak,” Dani said before standing up to leave with a mischievous look.

Felicity watched her go helplessly, not nearly done panicking about this. With a sigh, she looked down at her phone and pressed the refresh button on the browser out of curiosity.

“Oh now he’s trending on Twitter,” she announced to no one.

So much for everything staying the same.

* * *

Felicity had so much catching up to do that by the end of the day, her brain was numb, her feet were killing her, and all she wanted to do was curl up on her couch with a tub of mint chip. So of course, Dani was waiting for her as soon as she shut down her computer and gathered her stuff. A wicked look was on her face and Felicity just knew that she wouldn’t like what she had to say.

“Can we do this tomorrow instead?” she pleaded.

“Nope,” Dani said with a shake of her head as they made their way back to elevators. “We’re locked in. I called that friend of a friend who knows the investor of a great club. Our names are on the list and I am not taking no for an answer.”

Though she generally tried to avoid dramatics, Felicity couldn’t deny that she was tempted to throw a straight up temper tantrum in the middle of the crowded elevator.

“I am going to be the worst drinking buddy,” she said, trying to convince Dani that this was a bad idea.

“Please,” Dani said, drawing out the word as she rolled her eyes. “All it takes is two glasses of wine.”

Felicity couldn’t deny it. With a huff, she resigned herself to her fate.

“Wait,” she said warily as they reached the bottom floor. “What club are we going to?”

Dani flashed her a wide grin her way before sauntering out as if she’d masterminded the greatest plan ever. With a growing feeling of apprehension, Felicity knew that there was some meddling happening and she was not at all pleased about it. That was how she found herself standing in front of Verdant, of all places, less than an hour later with a frown fixed on her face.

“Are you serious?” Felicity asked, glaring over at Dani.

“As serious as can be,” her best friend said with a laugh before grabbing her arm to pull her up to the front of the forming line.

Felicity didn’t really know what game she was playing. Everyone had heard the same news cycle repeated all day. There was no chance that Oliver was at his club. She knew for an almost fact that he would be with his family, not hanging out with Starling City’s party scene. Yet Felicity followed her inside anyway. They definitely weren’t dressed for the club scene but Dani certainly didn’t seem to care. They didn’t need party dresses to drink.

“Start talking,” Dani said once they found a place at the bar and ordered their drinks.

With a sigh, Felicity launched into the story. She left out a few details that she wanted to keep to herself, especially about what was really going on with Oliver’s family and about some of the personal things that they’d shared. They got their drinks right as she was recounting their transition from the coffee shop to his villa. Dani’s eyes lit up as she described the gorgeous house but she clicked her tongue with disappointment when Felicity informed her that they literally only slept in his bed. By the time she finished, her tongue was loose and her body felt light. Due to her much stronger drink, Dani was nearly at her “about to do something crazy” stage of drinking.

“Can we go home now?” Felicity asked, not wanting to get caught up in her friend’s antics.

“Hell no,” Dani said dramatically, shaking her head as she reached out to touch Felicity’s arm. “We are in Verdant! The best club in town! Why would we go home? I wanna dance!”

Before Felicity could stop her, she hopped off the stool and disappeared into the crowd with a cheer.

“Wonderful,” Felicity muttered, knowing that she wasn’t going anywhere until Dani came back.

“Well, well, well,” a voice came out of nowhere. “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine.”

Her eyes widened as she looked over at Tommy, who was impeccably dressed in a suit. The sight of him was somewhat sobering, which might have been an insult if it weren’t for the fact that she was reminded of Oliver and why they’d come home early.

“How is he?” she asked, slipping off of her stool.

With a wince, she cursed her lack of casualness. She could have at least attempted to make small talk before diving into what she was really concerned about. But the question was out there and she certainly couldn’t call it back. So she simply waited for an answer.

“Angry,” Tommy said, waving the blonde bartender down for a drink of his own. “The employee that leaked the story worked at QC for fifteen years. It’s making him wonder what kind of company he’s going to take over when there’s very little loyalty between his father and the people who work for him. If they’re going to sell out Robert Queen for a quick buck then what will they do to Oliver, you know?”

Felicity nodded, fumbling with the clasp on her purse nervously.

“I’m not here to accost him, or you,” she promised him, realizing how bad this looked. “My friend dragged me here, literally. I dug my heels in a few times but she is freakishly strong. Not that I didn’t want to come. I mean, I didn’t want but only because I didn’t want Oliver to think I’m being stalkerish. I can definitely keep my distance. I planned on it, actually. But my friend was determined and you know what? I’m just going to stop now.”

Tommy looked amused, the corner of his mouth quirking upwards.

“Felicity, I honestly think that Oliver would be delighted if you accosted him,” he said honestly, accepting his drink from the bartender with a gracious nod. “And as for me? You made him laugh so I thoroughly approve.”

Felicity smiled slightly, her cheeks filling with color.

“Can you tell him that I asked about him?” she said.

Yeah, she’d definitely lost any poise or chill when it came to Oliver. The thought should have made her feel more ashamed. Maybe tomorrow with less wine in her system, she’d regret every word. But then Tommy gave her a confused look and chased the thoughts from her head.

“Wait a minute,” he said, catching onto something that she wasn’t aware of yet. “Did that idiot not get your number?”

Felicity’s eyes widened slightly. They didn’t really cross that line. She wasn’t going to push it, even though it made it slightly difficult to get in contact now. Before she could say a word, Tommy sighed heavily and shook his head.

“I swear he used to be good at this,” he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

He handed it over to Felicity, nodding once in encouragement.

“I kind of like that he isn’t anymore,” she admitted, setting her purse to the side so that she could add herself as a contact in his phone. “I don’t think that the guy he used to be would even spare me a glance.”

“Felicity, any man in his right mind would spare you every glance,” Tommy corrected her.

Taking his phone back, he tucked it in his jacket again before shooting her a wink.

“You enjoy your night.”

Felicity shook her head as he walked away with confidence in every single step. Tommy Merlyn was definitely a piece of work.

“Exactly how many billionaires did you sleep with on vacation?” Dani asked, coming up behind her to throw her arms around her neck.

“None,” Felicity hissed, glancing around to see if anyone heard her friend’s loud words as she turned to face her.

“Right. Cause you slept with Oliver Queen but you didn’t _sleep_ with Oliver Queen,” her friend nodded.

The bartender’s eyes were sparkling with amusement, making it clear that she’d heard. Felicity blushed even deeper, gathering herself and Dani before slapping money down on the counter to pay for their drinks. She sincerely hoped that the bartender wasn’t another Queen employee looking to make a quick buck but she was ready to get out of there either way.

“There’s a distinction,” she said weakly before hauling Dani out into the night with a hand on her wrist.

Once she put her in a taxi and sent her towards her house, making sure that she had money to pay the driver, Felicity took a deep breath and let her head clear for just a moment before waving down a taxi of her own. By the time she made it home, the long day had definitely caught up to her again. Felicity kicked off her heels at the door and dropped her purse on the couch, barely fishing her phone out before staggering back to her bedroom. Falling face first onto her bed wasn’t an option with the dress that she wore. After shimmying out of it, Felicity left it rumpled on her floor and slipped off her bra before yanking an old t-shirt over her head. Only then did she let herself collapse on the blankets.

“Ow,” she complained when her glasses pressed uncomfortably against her face.

Before Felicity could reach up to remove them, her phone chirped where she tossed it somewhere on the bed. Groaning, she sat up and patted around for it, thinking that it was probably a text from Dani telling her that she was home. Instead, the screen showed that an unknown number had messaged her. A frown on her face, she unlocked the phone and opened the message only to inhale sharply. Her heart picked up speed just a little bit as she read it once, then twice, then again a third time.

**O: I’m sorry if Tommy made you feel like you had to give over your number**

Felicity bit down on her lower lip, pulling her knees up to her chest as she contemplated what to do. This was really the moment of decision. She could ignore the text, wait it out a few days, and move on with her life. That was probably the easiest option. The sensible side of her brain told her that leaving what happened on the island was the best possible plan. But then she thought of Oliver sweetly wrapping his arms around her when they were watching the movie and how he gently he took her hand when they were sitting by that swimming pool. Screw reality. Felicity wasn’t ready to be done. Throwing all caution to the metaphorical wind, she quickly began typing out a message.

**F: I’m sorry that I didn’t do it back on that island.**

For a long few moments, Felicity chewed on her fingernail and hoped that she hadn’t said the wrong thing. Then those three mocking dots popped up and she nearly held her breath, waiting.

**O: I guess we’re not done defying those odds**

With a smile threatening to completely overtake her face, Felicity responded without second-guessing herself.

**F: I’m in if you are.**

**O: I’m not one to back down from a challenge**

**F: Good.**

Felicity felt warmth building in her chest so quickly that the cold shock of realization nearly knocked her over. She quickly typed out another message, guilt rising in her now.

**F: I’m sorry you had to end your trip early.**

**O: It wasn’t the same anyway**

Though he didn’t say it, Felicity briefly imagined “without you there” on the end and it brought a smile to her face. She wasn’t certain that it was what he was trying to say but it still made her happy.

**F: All the same, what you’re dealing with is a lot. I’m thinking about you.**

**O: That means more than you know**

Leaning back against her headboard, Felicity tried to muster up the energy to stay up and talk to him. But her eyes were burning with the effort of keeping them open and her limbs felt like they were weighed down. She was fighting a losing battle and the last thing that she wanted was to fall asleep in the middle of a conversation.

**F: Early wakeup call for me. I’ll talk to you later Oliver.**

A few moments later, his response came.

**O: Sweet dreams Felicity**

* * *

A few days passed and Felicity had no idea what to do. Texting Oliver was stranger than she thought it would be. The first night was perfect but then it all went downhill. They couldn’t seem to find that same easy rapport that happened on the island. Part of Felicity was terrified that it was the setting and their timing. Were they trying to force something that wasn’t supposed to happen? It was a hard fear to just chase away. On the fourth day, she’d picked up her phone about half a dozen times only to set it back down when she realized that she couldn’t come up with anything to say that didn’t sound ridiculous or awkward. It was all incredibly frustrating.

By the time her lunch hour came around, she found herself at a cafe across the street where she ordered a simple salad to take back to her desk. Felicity was checking out when her phone buzzed in the pocket of her dress. Pulling it out hopefully, she felt disappointed when an unknown number popped up. Oliver’s number had been saved in her phone on the second day of their conversations so she knew that it wasn’t him. When she opened it to read the message, confusion caused her to frown.

**T: verdant tomorrow @ 1pm**

Felicity didn’t have to search her brain long to figure out who it was. There was only one other person who had her number.

**F: Why?**

She didn’t have to wait long for a response and she could practically hear Tommy’s long-suffering sigh as she read it.

**T: because I’m tired of him moping around**

She narrowed her eyes, not liking the sound of that. Dani would probably applaud him for his meddling but Felicity wasn’t all that amused.

**F: I’m working tomorrow.**

**T: it’s saturday**

He had a point. But if he wanted to interfere, she could damn well be stubborn.

**F: What even makes you think I would come?**

**T: because I’m not an idiot and you have a bad poker face**

She huffed, pushing her salad away as annoyance built.

**F: That’s it. I’m definitely not coming now.**

There was no response. Felicity would have celebrated over having the last word if she thought that it was actually over. But she had the growing feeling that Tommy Merlyn did not give up that easily. Sure enough, hours passed during which she finished her work day, got home, ate dinner, took a shower, and settled herself in bed to read before she fell asleep. That was when her phone alerted her to a new message.

**T: bring a jacket when you come**

Felicity ground her teeth together, tossing her phone as far away as she could manage without throwing it completely off the bed. There weren’t many things that she was certain of at the moment so she held onto one thing that she knew for a fact. Tommy Merlyn was one of the most frustrating human beings she’d ever met. Yet when she woke up late the next morning, Felicity found herself standing in front of the closet after her shower considering what to wear. She definitely wasn’t dressing to go to Verdant. There were things she had to do. Important things. Like grocery shopping. Her kitchen was still nearly devoid of food.

Yes, she would go grocery shopping. And she definitely did not need a jacket for that. So Felicity threw on a pair of dark-wash jeans, a royal blue blouse, and her favorite panda flats before walking confidently out of her bedroom. She got as far as locking her door behind her when a blistering curse fell from her lips and she stomped back into her apartment. The grocery store might be a little chilly, especially near the refrigerated section. _That_ was why she may need a jacket. No other reason. But then she found herself aiming her red Mini Cooper towards the Glades. Verdant wasn’t a hard place to find and she remembered exactly the route she’d followed with Dani. Why the place would be open at 1pm, even on a Saturday, she didn’t know.

All that she was going to do was tell Tommy to mind his own business. It was warm outside so her jacket could stay in the car. It was perfect. But she found herself tucking it over her arm as she walked inside, just in case the club was a little cold. That’s it. Part of her hoped that Oliver and Tommy didn’t forgo basic air conditioning considering that it was approaching eighty degrees outside. She couldn’t even make it inside before her arm began sweating under the jacket. The door was open, much to her surprise, but the interior was completely deserted. Felicity never imagined that a club could be so clean but the the general lack of trash and stains on the floor was impressive. It wasn’t cold in there. She was tempted to ditch the jacket but it was too late.

“Smoak!”

Felicity turned quickly, watching as Tommy approached her from a storeroom with a box filled with various bottles in his hands.

“Sorry, restocking,” he said as he breezed past her and straight to the bar.

She narrowed her eyes at him, far from flattered by his warm smiles.

“I came to tell you to back off,” Felicity said.

“Did you?” Tommy asked, sounding unbothered.

“Yes.”

Several moments passed before he turned to look at her.

“Well?”

Felicity huffed, knowing that he was waiting for her to actually tell him to back off. Her mouth opened and closed several times before she gave up with a sigh.

“Texting is weird.”

Tommy looked at her with raised eyebrows.

“I mean not texting in general. That’s fine. Not weird at all. Well, it’s weird sometimes, depending on who has your number. I try to keep my number out of the hands of weird people. Doesn’t always work but I have a good vetting process. Of course you’re texting me now, which makes my vetting process feel like kind of a joke. I think I was hoping you would delete my number after giving it to Oliver. Anyways...Oliver. Texting Oliver is weird. We barely communicate. What the hell is that about, huh?”

Felicity inhaled deeply after her rant.

“Then stop texting,” Tommy said with a shrug, as if it was an easy fix. “I find that face-to-face conversations are way more enjoyable for both parties involved.”

“But-” Felicity couldn’t even get her protest out before she heard his voice.

It was clearly coming from upstairs, where she could see the hints of an office behind the blinds covering the windows.

“Tommy, can you come here for a second? Something in these books isn’t adding up,” Oliver called out.

Felicity’s eyes widened as Tommy grinned at her, putting away bottles one-by-one on the shelves behind the bar.

“Be right up buddy,” he shouted back before gesturing with his chin for her to go up the stairs.

“No,” Felicity said, shaking her head.

She was going to stand her ground here. There was no way she’d walk up those stairs and face her humiliating fail at simple texting. Nothing he could say would convince her otherwise.

“What do you have to lose?” Tommy asked.

“My dignity,” she hissed.

“That’s basically nothing,” he waved off with a flourish of his hand. “Get up there Smoak.”

“Absolutely not,” Felicity said, standing standing firm.

By the time she realized that actually leaving the club would be a better plan than standing in the middle of the dance floor, it was too late. The place was empty and had great acoustics which meant that voices, even quiet ones, traveled. So of course Oliver would peek his head out at the sound of her and Tommy arguing. Which meant that he could definitely see her standing in the middle of his club. Now she wasn’t planted in the spot out of stubbornness. She was simply frozen and wide-eyed.

“Felicity.”

The way he said her voice, nearly caressing it, brought her back to easy conversation over wine and soft kisses in the kitchen. Felicity pressed her bright pink lips together as he came down the stairs, looking just as good as she remembered. The forest green henley fit him like a glove and he had his sleeves pushed up which definitely brought her weakness for forearms to the front of her mind. Especially his forearms. Felicity was well aware that she was staring without saying a word but really, what could she say when Oliver Queen was walking right up to her looking like that?

“Hi,” she managed, internally kicking herself for not coming up with something more articulate than that.

He stopped about a foot away from her, looking like it was the last thing that he wanted to do. Felicity was partly relieved that the pull she felt to him back on the island didn’t stay there. She definitely wanted to be much closer than she was at the moment. But they were both hyper aware of the fact that they weren’t alone. Thankfully, Tommy reverted back to his wingman days with little effort.

“I’ll go take a look at those books,” he said, his grin clear in his voice as he left them standing alone.

Neither Felicity nor Oliver spared him a glance, their eyes fixed on one another until he closed the door of the office behind him. Then Oliver glanced in the direction that his best friend had gone and sighed.

“He told you to come, didn’t he?” he asked.

Felicity didn’t want to admit to it but she wasn’t about to lie to him either.

“Yeah he did,” she said, regretting her stubbornness. “And I didn’t want to.”

Confusion and a bit of hurt flashed over Oliver’s face as he looked back at her and she quickly rushed to fix it, realizing how bad that sounded.

“Not that I don’t want to see you. I do want to see you. I just didn’t want to come because Tommy told me to. I don’t particularly like meddling and I have a feeling that he does it way too much. So I only came to tell him to stop. I should have known you’d be here, hence the meddling, but it didn’t really cross my mind. I just want to be clear. I didn’t want to come because of Tommy. Not you.”

The words rushed out all at once, leaving her breathless and hoping that she hadn’t completely blown this to bits with her babbling. To her relief, Oliver looked at her with understanding. But there was still some reservation in his face and she knew exactly why. The distance between them suddenly didn’t feel like enough to hold the sudden awkwardness.

“It’s been weird,” she said.

“Yeah,” Oliver nodded in acknowledgment. “Why is that? It was so easy before.”

Felicity really didn’t want to talk about it. Because talking about it might lead to resolving it, which meant that it might be over. She really didn’t want it to be over. But they couldn’t just _not_ talk about it. So she took a deep breath to fortify herself and spoke.

“Starling City is the same,” Felicity said, remembering how she felt that first night. “It hasn’t changed. Our situations haven’t changed. I still have the same job and the same apartment and the same friends. You still have your family and your commitments and Tommy and everything else that comes with all of that. On the outside, nothing has changed.”

“But we’ve changed,” Oliver said, taking a step towards her.

Felicity reluctantly met his gaze.

“Have we?” she asked, her voice so quiet that she knew he barely heard it.

He swallowed hard, glancing away from her for several moments of stiff silence. Then Oliver looked back at her, his eyes alight with some sort of epiphany. When he reached out, Felicity watched as his knuckles stroked over the back of her hand before he took it completely, weaving their fingers together. It felt right. She didn’t know what to think about that.

“Give us today,” he said.

Felicity tilted her head to the side, unsure of what he meant.

“One day to see whether this can work here. That way we know for sure,” Oliver explained.

It wasn’t bad, as far as ideas went. There were still reservations but she pushed them to the back of her mind.

“Today,” Felicity nodded.

A soft smile formed on his face and he glanced over his shoulder, shouting up at Tommy that they were leaving as he grabbed a black jacket from where it was laid across the bar.

“Have fun!” Tommy yelled back, sounding triumphant already.

With a shake of her head, Felicity let Oliver lead her out the door with their hands still locked together. The heat outside seemed even worse and she groaned, earning a questioning look.

“Just wondering why I need a jacket,” she said, holding it up in her free hand.

The smile on his face grew brighter.

“This is why,” Oliver said as they rounded the corner to the alley.

Sure enough, there was a sleek black and red motorcycle parked there with a shiny black helmet hanging off of one of the handlebars. Felicity stopped short, her eyes widening at the sight of it. She’d definitely seen paparazzi pictures of Oliver around the city on the bike but it didn’t occur to her that he’d want her to ride it.

“I don’t know,” Felicity said warily, looking at him.

“Hey, I’ll take it slow,” Oliver said, stepping closer to her.

She still felt hesitant but a part of her wondered if it might be a little fun. Besides, she trusted him not to let her die in a horrible crash. Nodding once, Felicity released his hand to pull her jacket on as he did the same. When Oliver held his hand out for her purse, she gave it over and watched him open a compartment, retrieving a second helmet that was much smaller than the first before closing her purse in it.

“How many girls have ridden this thing?” Felicity asked, trying to sound casual and aloof.

Apparently it didn’t work because Oliver shot her a look.

“That helmet is for Thea but I’m sure she wouldn’t mind you borrowing it. Sometimes I think she likes riding this bike more than she likes me.”

That response was enough. Felicity settled it over her hair, thankful that she’d foregone the ponytail that day, and clipped it beneath her chin. Oliver was already sitting comfortably on the seat by the time she stepped off the curb.

“Glad I didn’t wear a dress,” Felicity muttered before carefully mounting the bike behind him.

Once she set her feet where Oliver pointed, she hesitantly wound her arms around him, pressing her front flush to his back. It felt more intimate than she expected, especially when he reached up and squeezed her hand.

“You’ll take it slow?” Felicity repeated his words, proud of the fact that her voice only wavered slightly.

“I promise,” Oliver told her before putting his own helmet on.

She couldn’t help the light squeak that escaped when he turned on the motorcycle. She couldn’t see his face but Felicity somehow knew that Oliver was amused as she tightened her hold on him and pressed her head to his back, squeezing her eyes shut. He was true to his word, though, as he pulled out of the alleyway slowly and began weaving through the city streets. Felicity gradually began to recognize the rhythm that came with riding a motorcycle. As she started to lean into the turns to help Oliver, she felt his chest rumble with a hum of approval. It took a long time for her to finally open her eyes and when she did, they were closer to downtown than she expected.

Felicity only hoped that Oliver’s bike wasn’t incredibly recognizable. She definitely wasn’t ready for any paparazzi encounters. She couldn’t help but feel surprised when he pulled into the parking garage opposite the botanical gardens. Once he cut the engine, Oliver cleared his throat and patted her hand. Felicity quickly realized that her death grip was still tight around his waist and slowly unwound her arms, sliding off of the bike with weak legs. She didn’t have to search for something to brace herself with because Oliver was off the motorcycle and steadying her in an instant.

“It happens,” he said once he pulled his helmet off, his other hand still on her elbow.

“Yeah I’m sure all the girls go weak at the knees around you,” Felicity mumbled.

He huffed out a laugh before reaching up to unbuckle her helmet and pull it off. Without thinking, she reached up and ran her fingers through her hair, hoping that it wasn’t completely flat.

“The botanical gardens?” Felicity asked once he handed over her purse.

Oliver nodded, reaching out towards her. She didn’t hesitate to take his hand, walking with him towards the pedestrian exit.

“Thea and I used to come out here all the time before she went into high school. I haven’t been in ages.”

“My mom took me to see the botanical garden at the Bellagio a long time ago. I barely remember it,” Felicity said as they waited at the crosswalk.

“You visited Vegas when you were that young?” Oliver asked.

She shook her head, remembering that she hadn’t told him where she was from.

“I was born and raised there,” Felicity told him.

“Really?” he looked surprised by that, though pleased at the new information. “I’ve been there a few times.”

Laughter escaped her mouth before she could help it.

“I’m sure you have,” she said.

Oliver didn’t look offended. Felicity noticed that he didn’t make a secret of his past. He wasn’t proud of it but he wasn’t about to hide it either. It was a respectable aspect of his personality. She squeezed his hand lightly, letting him know that she was only teasing.

“I just hoped that this was the last place that the paparazzi would think to look for me. The only reason they weren’t waiting outside of Verdant is because I had an early morning,” Oliver said.

Felicity glanced around just before they stepped inside, scanning the crowd for any raised cameras. Even though more than one person was openly staring at Oliver, no one was photographing him. That didn’t mean that they weren’t making note of his presence. As uncomfortable as she felt, she couldn’t imagine how the Queen family lived with it. She was distracted by the ticket booth and only made a little bit of a fuss when Oliver pulled his wallet out to pay for both tickets.

“The was my idea,” he reminded Felicity.

She couldn’t argue with that but vowed to herself that this was the only thing he would pay for.

“What do you want to see first?” Oliver asked, handing her a map of the gardens as they stepped away from the booth.

“You tell me, I am submitting to your expertise,” Felicity said, looking at him expectantly.

“The statuary vista,” Oliver decided, leading her to the right.

She shed her jacket as soon as they stepped out into the sunlight, tucking it over her arm again. Oliver didn’t hesitate to do the same before taking her hand again.

“They’re artists,” Felicity noted as they walked along the path that led around the entire vista, which was about the half the length of a football field.

Oliver nodded as they paused in front of a statue that undoubtedly depicted Leonardo da Vinci.

“A local artist carved them for the gardens in the seventies, I think.”

“And these?” Felicity asked, moving away from the statue to a large plaque set atop what looked like a marble podium that stood about fifteen feet away from da Vinci.

“Every notable donor gets a plaque in their honor,” Oliver said, sounding as though he cared about those much less.

She glanced over her shoulder at him.

“Do the Queens have a plaque?” Felicity asked, a smile playing on her lips.

He let out a long-suffering sigh and nodded, jerking his chin off in the distance towards another area of the vista. She smiled wider, tugging on his hand.

“Come on. I want to see if you can name all of the statues without looking at the details,” Felicity said.

Oliver didn’t disappoint, though he pressed a finger to her mouth when she pointed at the Robert and Moira Queen plaque with a smirk on her face.

“This leads to the rose garden,” he said, leading her to a path off of the vista.

For the next hour, they fell into the same easy rapport that they developed on the island with very little effort. Felicity found herself laughing as he recounted all of the trouble he and Thea got into with their mischief. Though Oliver was ten years older, it seemed like that didn’t stop him from developing a close relationship with his sister. The love that he had for her was clear in the way that he spoke about her. It was easy to forget about anyone and anything else as they walked together. By the time they made it back to the main building, Felicity was far from ready to leave. Oliver seemed to feel the same, tilting his head towards a small outdoor cafe that overlooked the hydrangea garden. Once they ordered their coffees, they found a small table and sipped at them, enjoying the comfortable atmosphere.

“So?” Oliver asked after a while.

“It’s gorgeous,” Felicity said, looking out at the garden. “And so peaceful. I couldn’t imagine a better place to go.”

His answering smile was satisfied and she couldn’t help but reach down, brushing her thumb over the back of his hand in soothing circles.

“Weird?” Oliver asked.

Felicity shook her head, biting down on her lip.

“You?” she asked.

He gave her a soft look.

“Not at all,” Oliver said, turning his hand over to weave his fingers through hers.

Felicity couldn’t help but grin, ducking her head as her cheeks warmed. This felt right. She was almost afraid to hope that it would stay that way. When Oliver lifted her hand and brushed his lips over her knuckles, Felicity shivered lightly and looked up at him. Before either of them could say a word, movement near their table drew their eyes towards a nervous looking man that approached them.

“Mr. Queen,” he said, nodding at Oliver. “My name is Stanley Clarke. I’m the Facilities Director.”

Oliver released her hand, reaching out to shake his. It seemed so out of the ordinary for him that Felicity assumed he was used to it.

“Is everything okay, Mr. Clarke?” he asked.

“Of course, Mr. Queen. We are honored that you visited today. I felt it was my duty to forewarn you that a crowd is gathering on the street. I gave strict orders that they remain outside of the building but I didn’t want you to be surprised by it.”

Oliver sighed heavily and Felicity knew exactly what was going on. He’d been found. A sick feeling stirred in the pit of her stomach as she remembered how they’d treated him at the airport. Couldn’t they just leave him alone for one afternoon?

“Thank you,” Oliver said to the man before looking at Felicity. “We should leave before the crowd gets too big.”

She nodded, gathering her things to stand up.

“Thank you,” she repeated, smiling at Stanley Clarke.

They hurried towards the main building, making a point of not holding hands this time.

“You’re going to go out first,” Oliver said quietly, tugging on her arm before they got anywhere near the wall of windows.

Felicity looked at him questioningly.

“I don’t want them to see you,” he said regretfully. “Queen Consolidated is just a few blocks to the right. I’ll call ahead to the front desk and they’ll let you in. I’ll meet you there.”

She nodded, realizing that he was trying to protect her from being identified. Glancing around, she saw that no one was looking at them. Turning back to him, she pushed up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“I’ll see you in a few minutes,” Felicity said, reaching down to squeeze his hand.

He nodded, looking weary for just a moment. She didn’t like that he had to face this alone but she was also grateful that her face wasn’t going to be posted on all the gossip sites within an hour. Just like Oliver expected, no one paid her any mind as she stepped out onto the street. Her eyes widened at the sheer number of photographers waiting for Oliver to appear. To her relief, there seemed to be a gathering of security guards who were ready to get Oliver out of there. Turning away, she hurried down the street towards Queen Consolidated. No sooner had she crossed a street before she heard shouts behind her. Just like Oliver told her, the security guard waved her into the lobby as soon as she stepped through the door. He was the same guard who worked there when she was an employee but she didn’t blame him for not recognizing her.

“Felicity Smoak?”

She nodded, passing through the metal detector. It felt strange to be in the building that used to be her workplace, especially with the next words that the guard spoke.

“Mr. Queen told me to direct you to the executive garage,” he said, pointing to a specific elevator that regular employees were never allowed to use. “You’ll see which button it is.”

“Thank you,” Felicity said, crossing the lobby quickly.

Since it was Saturday, there was barely any activity. She couldn’t help but feel grateful for that. The elevator came quickly and sure enough, there was a small directory that told her which button to press. By the time she made it into the garage level, she had no idea where to go so she waited near the elevator. It took a while before she finally heard the approaching rumble of Oliver’s motorcycle. When he pulled up just in front of her, Felicity didn’t even stop off the curb before he was standing up and tugging the helmet from his head. It was entirely unfair that his hair seemed unaffected.

She didn’t get the chance to linger on the thought before he was pulling her in and kissing her lips lightly. Felicity froze out of surprise for just a moment before relaxing into the kiss, her arms sliding around his shoulders as his hands cupped her face gently. It didn’t last long but it was enough to have her head spinning by the time he pulled away. As tempted as she was to chase his lips and prolong the kiss, Felicity slowly dragged her eyes open and met his brilliant blue gaze. There was an apology in his eyes alongside the lingering happiness from their time together.

“I’m sorry about that,” he said, still holding her face.

Felicity shook her head, refusing to let him feel bad about it. One of her hands slid to his wrist, encircling it.

“It’s not your fault,” she assured him, brushing her thumb over his pulse point. “I’m just glad you got out of it relatively unscathed. It looked terrible.”

Oliver shrugged, pulling away slightly only to kiss her on the forehead.

“It comes with the territory,” he said, stepping backwards to open the compartment again.

Felicity was ready and found herself on the back of the bike in no time, her arms around his waist.

“Will they find us again?” she asked.

“There’s a private exit that’s blocked off and I’m used to losing them. We’ll be fine,” Oliver assured her before starting it up.

She relaxed, keeping her eyes open for this ride. The trip back to Verdant was relatively quick and easy. This time he pulled up directly behind her car. There were no paparazzi to be seen, probably due to the fact that this was the Glades. Her legs were a little steadier when she climbed off and handed the helmet over. Oliver didn’t get off and she assumed that this wasn’t his destination. He did cut the engine and take off his helmet.

“What now?” Felicity said, handing her helmet over.

This was the part that she dreaded. The resolution.

“That depends on you as much as me,” Oliver said, trading the helmet for her purse.

She hesitated before reaching out to brush her fingers through his hair.

“I’m not ready to be done with this,” Felicity admitted.

Though panic flashed through his eyes at the beginning of her sentence, Oliver looked relieved by the end of it.

“Neither am I,” he agreed.

“So...one step at a time?” she suggested.

“Sounds like a plan,” Oliver said with a smile.

She returned it easily, stepping closer to him. Leaning over, she cupped his jaw and initiated the kiss. It started as gentle as the other but quickly deepened. It was still a tentative kiss, promising all sorts of possibilities. His teeth nipped at her bottom lip, pulling a light gasp out of her as his tongue soothed the sting. Felicity scraped her nails lightly through his hair, giving as good as she got before pulling away with a shy smile.

“Have a good weekend, Oliver,” she said, brushing her thumb over the dimple in his cheek when he smiled.

“I’ll see you later, Felicity,” he said, the words sounding like a promise.

With a nod, she stepped away and pulled out her keys, barely refraining from a little happy dance as she approached her car. By the time she was safely ensconced in her seat, the wide grin on her face was impossible to hide. With a light squeal of happiness once Oliver drove away, she started her car and pulled away from the curb, feeling a thousand times better than she had all week. Not that Tommy Merlyn would _ever_ find out. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

When Felicity showed up bright and early to work two mornings later, she was surprised that Dani didn’t meet her at the elevators like she tended to do. Instead she was hovering in the doorway of Felicity’s office staring at something inside. With a confused look, she crossed the floor and tapped on Dani’s shoulder only to receive a slap to the arm.

“You didn’t tell me that you were seeing him again,” she hissed.

“I didn’t...wait...how did you-” Felicity cut off at the sight of what clearly brought Dani to the office.

Sitting on the table by her window was a gorgeous arrangement of flowers, the main among them magenta hydrangeas that were the exact same color as the dress that Felicity wore the night she met Oliver. It was fairly clear that he was the one who sent them even before she plucked the card out of the middle and opened it.

_How do you feel about Italian food?_

__\- OQ_ _

With a smile tugging at her lips, Felicity turned around to meet Dani’s wide eyes.

“I think I’m dating Oliver Queen,” she said, unable to keep the delight out of her voice.

Letting out a giddy laugh, Dani crossed the room and hugged her tightly before sitting them both down and demanding details. Felicity recounted them dazedly, stuck on how incredibly normal it felt to say those words. She had definitely been wrong. Everything was definitely different and it felt good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love to hear what you think!
> 
>  
> 
> **tumblr -[dreamsofolicity](https://dreamsofolicity.tumblr.com/)  
> **  
>  twitter - [ogteamarrow](https://twitter.com/ogteamarrow)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity and Oliver have their first real, official date. Things, of course, turn out differently than expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is fluffy. Beyond fluffy. Teeth-rotting. The whole fic won't be like this but I'm writing some other stuff that's fairly dramatic and angsty so I wanted this one where it's mostly happy. I hope you don't mind.
> 
> For those who have a visual mind like me, [this is Felicity's date outfit](https://www.polyvore.com/chapter_date_outfit/set?id=223715632).

Felicity stood outside of the Queen mansion nervously, wondering why she ever agreed to this. The manor alone was intimidating, as if it was a living, breathing thing judging every inch of her. There was a chance, however, that Felicity was projecting. Because she was certain that the moment she did step through the door, there _would_ be living, breathing people judging her left and right. Or maybe just Moira Queen, but that was enough to intimidate anyone. But Felicity Smoak was a grown woman with a great job, a great apartment, and a (maybe) great boyfriend. So she popped a mint into her mouth, smoothed out her dress, and knocked several times on the grand doors. Instead of a butler, a maid, or a seven piece orchestra, Felicity was greeted with an unfairly attractive Oliver Queen when the door opened.

“Hey,” he said with a smile.

Felicity’s nerves immediately calmed and she didn’t hesitate to give him an easy smile in return.

“Hi,” she said softly.

“Come on in,” Oliver said, stepping back and opening the door wider.

She couldn’t help but stare around with wide eyes at the foyer alone. Felicity couldn’t imagine living in a place like the Queen mansion, much less growing up there. It felt more like a museum than a home. To her relief, there was no one else around. She left her purse on a table to the left of the door before turning to face Oliver.

“It’s quiet,” Felicity said, unsure of what else to say.

“Yeah my mom and dad are at a gala in the city and I let the staff go for the night,” he said, stepping closer to her with his hands in the pockets of his black dress pants.

His midnight blue shirt complemented him perfectly. Felicity couldn’t help but gaze at him for a few moments, wondering how she found herself in this situation.

“What do you have there?” Oliver asked, noticing the small gift bag in her hand.

Felicity remembered what she’d brought and flushed slightly, hoping that it wasn’t entirely ridiculous.

“Well I was going to bring a bottle of wine but then I remembered that great wine you had at the villa. I knew you’d probably have an even better choice for tonight so I decided against that,” she began, taking the long way before she revealed what was in her hand.

“Felicity you didn’t have to bring me anything,” Oliver said with a slight smile.

“Wait for it,” she said, holding up her free hand. “I was in a used bookstore the other day that specializes in rare copies and I remembered us talking about books and peeked around a little bit. That’s when I found this.”

Felicity handed over the bag, watching as he pulled out the leather bound book carefully.

“Wow,” Oliver said, his eyes widening as he opened it to the surprisingly well-kept pages.

“It’s a vintage copy of The Odyssey printed in 1917,” she said, mostly proud but somewhat nervous that he’d hate it. “How did I do?”

He looked up at her, amazement on his face.

“It’s amazing,” Oliver said, reaching out to take her hand.

Felicity let him tug her in as her heart swelled.

“I’m not always good at the whole gift-giving thing,” she admitted.

“Could have fooled me,” he said before brushing his lips over her temple.

She beamed up at him and he gave her a gentle smile in return.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Oliver said.

Felicity nodded her head.

“Me too,” she said, threading her fingers through his. “I mean, you did promise me Italian.”

He looked amused, pressing a light kiss to her lips before pulling away. Felicity almost regretted bringing up the food if that was the only kissing she’d get. Oliver seemed to notice the slightest bit of disappointment in her eyes.

“We have time,” he reminded her, setting the book down next to her purse.

“I know,” Felicity sighed before letting him lead her out of the foyer.

She was barely conscious of the house around them as they walked side-by-side past a grandiose formal dining room, a large parlor, and finally to a covered terrace overlooking the grounds. If it weren’t for the slightly overcast clouds in the sky that threatened rain at some point, Felicity was certain that the setting sun would cast a beautiful glow over all of this. Her eyes were almost immediately drawn to a table laden with several dishes and, unsurprisingly, a bottle of wine.

“This looks so good,” Felicity said, taking it all in as Oliver pulled her chair out for her.

“I wanted it to be perfect,” he said as he took his own seat before pouring them both a glass of wine.

“I haven’t tasted the food but it smells heavenly enough that I feel comfortable saying that you succeeded,” Felicity told him.

“Help yourself,” Oliver encouraged her.

She needed no further invitation, reaching out to fill her plate with some of the pasta and a piece of chicken.

“What is this?” Felicity asked curiously.

“Spaghetti alla caprese and grilled tuscan chicken.”

She took a bite of the pasta first, nearly melting into her chair at the taste.

“This is amazing.”

Oliver looked beyond pleased, hiding a grin behind his glass of wine before reaching out to serve himself.

“Wait,” Felicity said, pausing in the middle of cutting into her chicken.

He looked up at her with raised eyebrows.

“If you said that you gave the staff the night off, who cooked this?” Felicity asked, though she already had a suspicion.

Oliver shrugged, taking a bite of his chicken with a mischievous light in his eyes.

“Oh that is so unfair,” she said, lightly bumping her foot against his leg beneath the table. “You are so screwing up the curve here, Queen.”

“How is that?” he asked with a small smile.

Felicity narrowed her eyes at him.

“You’re perfect,” she said, finally cutting off a bite of chicken. “I’m dating a perfect man and I have no hope of catching up.”

She put the chicken in her mouth and shook her head at the explosion of flavor on her tongue.

“Unfair,” she said weakly once she swallowed, reaching for her wine.

Oliver stopped her hand, bringing her attention back to him. There was a bigger smile on his face and he stared at her with such awe that she lost all ability to speak for what had to be the first time in her life.

“I’m not perfect, Felicity,” he said, brushing his thumb over the back of her hand. “When I look at you, I see a smart, funny, gorgeous woman and I wonder how the hell I managed to get her to even look my way.”

She smiled, looking down at their joined hands.

“You made me forget how miserable I was,” Felicity said, looking back up at him. “You made me _want_ to have fun. Which was a quick turnaround, believe me.”

“I do,” Oliver said with a nod. “When I saw you in that bar, you looked so annoyed that I almost didn’t come up to you. But then I saw you holding that godawful pink cocktail and the face you made when you took a drink was kind of adorable.”

Felicity wrinkled her nose at the adorable comment. That was definitely not what she wanted Oliver Queen’s first impression of her to be, knowing his past experience with model-type women.

“Then you started talking and I knew right then that I’d probably never be able to keep up with you. But there was something in me that really wanted to try.”

Her eyes widened slightly and she let out a laugh.

“What?” Oliver said.

“You’re telling me that my endless babbling actually charmed you?” Felicity asked.

“It’s endearing,” he said.

“You might be the first person to say that. Ever.”

“Good, I like winning,” Oliver said.

“Now that does not surprise me,” Felicity told him.

Squeezing her hand lightly, Oliver released it only to nod at her to keep eating. Felicity was all too glad to do so. Unsurprisingly, the wine went perfectly with the meal. Oliver really had this all down to a science.

“So…” he said after swallowing a bite of pasta. “We’re dating, huh?”

Felicity’s cheeks filled with color and she looked up at him with wide eyes, remembering her earlier slip.

“No,” she said quickly before shaking her head. “I mean yes. And by yes I mean we should discuss it. Because that’s sort of a mutual decision thing. I know where I stand, and I guess you do too. But this is where the mutual thing comes in. Because dating is a two person thing. Unless you’re a polygamist, which I am definitely not. No judgment for those who are but I can barely handle one person, much less more than one. I wouldn’t even know where to put my hands. Not in a sexual way. But sort of in a sexual way, now that I think about it. Please, please stop me.”

Oliver looked delighted at her ramble whereas Felicity wanted nothing more than to disappear completely. She settled with taking a long drink of her wine.

“I think it’s safe to say that we’re dating,” Oliver said, twisting a bite of pasta around his fork with nimble fingers.

A wave of relief rushed through her and she relaxed, managing a smile as she set down her glass. That was when Oliver’s gaze grew slightly more heated, catching her off guard and making her grow still in her chair.

“And you are more than welcome to put your hands wherever you want.”

Felicity’s eyes widened slightly at his low, suggestive voice as warmth replaced the relief, thrumming beneath her skin and making her squirm just a bit before she remembered how to breathe.

“Good to know,” she said, well aware of how breathless she sounded.

Yes, it was safe to say that this man that she was dating might just be the death of her.

“So tell me about your work,” Oliver said, moving on seamlessly.

Felicity was slightly grateful for the subject change, knowing that she may just combust on the spot if she was left thinking about all the possible places that her hands could go.

“I work just under the CTO at Coeus Technologies,” she said.

“Coeus? That’s Greek, isn’t it?”

Felicity nodded her head, quickly swallowing the bite she’d just taken.

“Some scholars theorize that he was the Titan god of intellect,” she told him.

“That’s fitting,” Oliver said.

“And yet we haven’t even had a toga-themed party yet,” Felicity said, shaking her head in disappointment.

“Now _that_ is a missed opportunity,” he said.

“That’s what I keep saying,” she laughed.

Just like that, the conversation grew comfortable and they slipped back into their normal, easy banter. By the time they cleared their plates and drank two glasses of wine each, they found themselves walking along the terrace to the uncovered area. Felicity noticed a pool that she hadn’t seen before and remembered that first night. One look at Oliver and she knew that he was doing the same.

“I thought you had your own place,” Felicity said, recalling how he told her about his apartment back on the island.

“I do,” Oliver nodded, slipping his hand into hers as he tugged her towards the railing that separated them from the gardens. “The paparazzi don’t come out here much anymore. They know they aren’t going to get any moneyshots. But they do linger around my building and I didn’t want you to have to deal with that. This has more privacy and my parents didn’t mind me borrowing the place for the evening.”

Felicity nodded, sinking her teeth into her lower lip. Sometimes it was easy to forget that being with Oliver meant being with Oliver Queen, which was a very important distinction. Oliver was the sweet, funny man who dazzled her with his amazing cooking one minute and set her aflame with heated comments the next. Oliver Queen was his family, a public persona that was in the tabloids at least once a month for doing nothing more than leaving his apartment or going to his club.

“We’re going to have to figure that out eventually,” Felicity said, bringing his gaze to her.

He nodded, looking like he dreaded it.

“The other women…” he trailed off, looking at her with uncertainty.

Felicity nodded at him to continue. There was no point in either of them pretending like his past didn’t exist. She believed that he was a different person. She’d seen proof of it.

“They knew what they were getting into. They relished in it and I think a lot of them liked the attention more than they really liked me. I didn’t care back then but eventually it got exhausting to be seen as a name and a face rather than as a person. So I just stopped,” Oliver said, looking down at their joined hands. “Anyway, they all enjoyed the paparazzi and that’s why I didn’t try to shield them from it. But you…”

“Hey.”

Felicity tugged on his hand, bringing his eyes back up to hers.

“I know what I’m doing,” she said, stepping closer to him. “I am choosing to date you, Oliver Queen. I know what comes with that. If we’re going to do this, it can’t just be in a bubble where we sneak around trying to keep anyone from seeing me. I’m not saying that we go out in the middle of Nelson Plaza and start shouting our personal business to anyone and everyone. But when it comes time, we can have dinner at a restaurant or go for a walk through a park. And if we want to have dinner at your apartment, we’ll have dinner at your apartment. I would offer mine but I can’t cook at all and we’ll probably end up with takeout.”

She smiled as Oliver let out a laugh.

“I like takeout,” he said.

“I like you,” Felicity said, bringing her free hand up to cup his cheek. “Everything else is just details. We can deal with it as it comes.”

Oliver leaned in, kissing her softly at first. It didn’t take long for them to step closer, his hand curving around her hip to pull her flush to him as his tongue traced the seam of her lips and she gasped lightly, her hand going around the back of his head. As she pushed up on her heels to meet him at a better angle, Oliver lightly brushed his tongue over hers. It wasn’t until a drop of water fell onto Felicity’s forehead that she broke away from him and looked up at the sky. Sure enough, several more raindrops came down on them both.

“We should go inside,” Oliver said.

“Wait,” Felicity said with a smile, catching his shirt in her hand before he could tug her away.

“For what?” he asked.

The rain began falling harder and she let out a delighted laugh, stretching out her hand.

“Kiss me again,” Felicity said, looking up at him.

Oliver shook his head, stepping closer to her as they both grew wetter.

“Someone has seen The Notebook too many times,” he said.

“Says the guy who loves Pretty Woman,” Felicity said before bringing him down for a kiss.

It was somewhat sloppy and less passionate than usual but it made them laugh as they pulled away.

“Satisfied?” Oliver asked, taking her hand to finally pull her inside.

“Very!” Felicity yelled over the loudly pouring rain.

By the time they made it inside, they were drenched and laughing. Oliver shook his head, sending droplets flying everywhere. Then his eyes raked over her body and she realized belatedly that her dress was mostly white. Felicity reddened, lifting her hands to cover her chest without thinking. The flash of desire in his eyes made her wonder if she didn’t just look like a drowned cat.

“Let’s go find some towels,” Oliver said, his voice huskier than usual as he turned away.

Felicity followed him through the house and up the stairs, barely paying attention to the trail of rainwater they were leaving with every step. When he led her into a room and switched on the light, it didn’t take her long to figure out that it must have been his bedroom when he lived there. Oliver disappeared into an en suite bathroom and came back with a stack of fluffy towels, handing one off to her while keeping his eyes respectfully on her face.

“Thanks,” Felicity said, holding it to her front as she wiped off her face.

“Do you want to dry your dress?” Oliver asked as he scrubbed the water from his hair.

She nodded, wondering what she’d wear in the meantime. He seemed to find an easy solution, pulling a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants from his drawer.

“I stay over here sometimes when Thea’s in town,” he explained, handing them over to her.

“Thanks,” she said as she took them.

As Felicity turned to walk into the bathroom, she felt his eyes on her and her blush spread to her chest. Once the door was closed, she quickly stripped off her dress before realizing that her bra was a lost cause as well. Felicity settled with wringing out her panties and putting them back on, unable to convince herself to go without. Pulling the pins from her hair was a challenge and her hair was a sopping mess by the time she finished it. Towel drying it as much as possible, Felicity sorted it out and let it fall to her shoulders in damp curls before tugging the t-shirt over her head.

It was a soft dark grey and smelled just like Oliver. When she reached for the sweatpants, something stopped her. Dani had made several suggestive comments about this particular date, considering that it was their third, and Felicity had pushed them all out of her head until now. The way Oliver looked at her seemed to suggest that he felt the same pull that she did. But she wasn’t sure that sex on the third date was something she was ready for. Biting down on her lower lip, she glanced up in the mirror and studied herself. It took only about three seconds and a burst of confidence for her to leave the sweatpants behind and retrieve her clothes, her bra carefully in the folds of her dress.

Walking out, she stopped short at the sight of Oliver’s back turned to her. His very uncovered back. He wore a pair of low-slung sweatpants not unlike the ones he handed her and nothing else. He was balancing on one foot while the other used his towel to mop up the water they’d dripped onto the floor of his bedroom. It was simultaneously adorable and sexy, bringing a smile to her lips. When she closed the bathroom door behind her, he glanced around and stopped short at the sight of her. His eyes drifted over her from head to toe, lingering on her bare legs and the t-shirt that didn’t even hit her mid-thigh.

“The sweatpants kept falling off,” Felicity lied without thinking, becoming more nervous the longer he waited to talk.

“Oh,” Oliver said, his eyes lifting to her face after several moments. “I can go find something of Thea’s if you want.”

She shook her head, her heart racing in her chest.

“It’s just a few minutes,” Felicity said, hating how bad she was at this. “I’ll survive.”

“That makes one of us,” Oliver muttered to himself.

Certain that she wasn’t supposed to hear that, Felicity pretended like she didn’t while inwardly dancing at the fact that he wasn’t entirely unaffected.

“Dryer?” she asked, holding up her dress.

“Yeah it’s… this way,” Oliver gestured out of his door before grabbing a shirt from the bed.

“I’ll follow you,” Felicity said, more than a little disappointed as he hid his very impressive abs from her.

They were quiet as they walked through the halls and back downstairs. Felicity hadn’t planned this far ahead and prayed with every step that Robert and Moira Queen decided to wait a while to return. She wouldn’t recover if her maybe boyfriend’s parents saw her in nothing but his shirt and her panties. The storm sounded like it was still going strong so she hoped that may at least delay them from returning.

“You okay?” Oliver said, noticing her stressed look.

“Fine,” Felicity said with a quick nod. “Sorry for all of this. I guess I shouldn’t have tried to live my rom-com moment.”

“It was fun,” he assured her, taking her hand.

She smiled at him, set at ease once more just as they walked into a large laundry room. Felicity stepped forward, tossing her dress and bra in the machine before setting it on a delicate cycle in the hopes that it wouldn’t ruin either one of them. Once it rumbled to life, she turned around and met Oliver’s gaze where he was leaning against the doorway.

“So my sweatpants didn’t fit, huh?” he asked.

Felicity shook her head, biting down on the inside of her cheek to keep from giving anything away.

“They’re a lot like the ones that you borrowed at the villa,” Oliver said, stepping forward. “Those seemed fine.”

“Did they?” Felicity asked, tilting her head to the side.

He nodded, reaching out with both hands to push her damp hair behind her shoulders.

“I believe, Miss Smoak, that you are lying.”

“Why would I do that?” she asked innocently, if not a little breathlessly as his fingers stroked the side of her neck in a featherlight touch.

Oliver simply hummed before ducking his head. Felicity expected him to kiss her but he hovered close, his warm breath teasing her lips and his thumb gently sweeping over the line of her jaw. Felicity was surrounded by him, her head clouding with the smell of rain combined with his musky cologne and the slightest hint of wine still on his breath. It made her feel unsteady, like the world was tilting on its side and he was the only thing keeping her grounded. Her hands gripped at his shoulders, steadying herself as she held tight to the soft cotton. Felicity’s heart was beating so loudly that she was certain he had to hear it.

“Oliver,” she whispered, her eyes slipping closed as her head tilted back invitingly.

His lips finally met hers, the touch brief and light in a way that didn’t satisfy her at all. Felicity pushed up on her toes, pressing her mouth more firmly to his. When she opened her mouth and swept her tongue over his full lower lip, it seemed to break the control that he was trying to maintain. With a low noise that she felt rather sensuously, Oliver pressed a hand to the small over back and cupped the back of her head with the other, pulling her in as close as possible. Felicity let out a small squeak of surprise before relaxing into him, her hands dropping to his chest. She could feel the muscles working under her touch and wished once more that he didn’t bother to put the shirt on. The kiss was all consuming, spreading a fire from her lips down to her chest and even lower. When they staggered back into the dryer, they broke apart with laughter on their lips.

“We should probably…”

“Yeah,” Felicity agreed with a nod, knowing what he was going to suggest.

Oliver pressed another kiss to her lips before pulling away with heat in his eyes. They left the laundry room like teenagers sneaking around, walking quietly with occasional bouts of soft snickers all the way back to his bedroom. As soon as the door was shut, Oliver tried to tug Felicity back into his arms but her eyes fell on something she hadn’t seen before.

“Oh my God,” she said with a delighted grin, ducking under his arm easily.

Felicity darted to his desk before he could catch her, picking up the frame that caught her eye.

“This is you!”

She turned the picture around to show his younger self posing with his father in front of the Queen’s Gambit.

“I have tried to throw that picture out a thousand times,” Oliver groaned.

“It’s amazing,” Felicity giggled, stepping away from him and turning around as he tried to take it from her hand.

“Fe-li-ci-ty,” he said, drawing her name out dramatically as his arms wrapping around her from behind.

Reaching up, she touched her hand to his cheek and turned her head to press a kiss to his lips while setting the frame down on the desk. Pulling away before it could go too far, Felicity looked up into his eyes seriously.

“Do you have anymore embarrassing pictures?” she asked.

Oliver let out a low growl that sent heat straight to the apex of her thighs as he turned her around and kissed her fully. Felicity couldn’t help but smile against his lips, letting him guide her across the room. When he broke away and sat back on the bed, she hesitated for just a moment, her bravado failing her.

“You okay?” Oliver asked, looking up at her.

Felicity nodded, swallowing hard.

“I don’t… I’m not sure that…” she sighed, unable to get her thoughts together.

“Hey,” he said, reaching out to take her hand. “It’s whatever you’re comfortable with.”

She smiled, somehow knowing that’s exactly what he would say. Straddling his thighs, she explored his face with the tip of her fingers, trying to make sure that he was actually real. Because she meant what she said earlier. It was hard to find much of a fault with the man who sat before her. Before, Felicity would have no problem seeing what was wrong with the lifestyle that he lived. But now she could see the man who came out on the other side of that and he was amazing. Ever since Cooper, it had been hard for her to convince herself that she deserved anything like that.

“What?” Oliver said, tilting his head to the side in response to her searching gaze.

Felicity shook her head.

“Just trying to convince myself that this isn’t some dream,” she admitted.

He drew her in with a soft smile, kissing her slowly and languidly as if they had all the time in the world.

“Definitely...” Oliver murmured before kissing her again. “...real.”

Felicity smiled against his lips and pushed him back to lie down, pulling away to look down at him.

“Oliver?” she said quietly.

“Hmm?” he responded.

She bit down on her lower lip nervously, playing with the collar of his shirt.

“Felicity?”

Her eyes flickered back up to his and she saw curiosity and concern there.

“I really liked it when you had your shirt off earlier,” she whispered as if it was some grave secret.

A grin broke out on his face before he gently lifted her up and off of him, laying her on her back before sitting up.

“I guess it’s only fair since you’re not wearing pants,” Oliver said, mirth in his eyes as he seized the back of his shirt to lift it up and over his head.

Felicity stared at his chest and abs openly, knowing that he could probably see the desire that she felt in her eyes.

“You told me I can put my hands anywhere I want?” she asked, glancing up at him.

Oliver nodded slowly as she pushed up to sit, her hand slowly extending to brush over his collarbone and down to his chest, underneath which she could feel his heart beating as quickly as hers, much to her consolation.

“Good,” Felicity decided, relishing in the feeling of his warm skin beneath her touch. “But only if you do the same.”

He smirked, drawing her in with an arm around her waist.

“Now that I can agree to,” he said.

Felicity grinned, glad to hear that they were still on the same page.

“Kiss me,” she said, sliding her hand around his back to trace his spine.

“Yes ma’am,” Oliver said before leaning in to do just that.

They stayed just like that, exploring what they could touch while kissing and kissing until they collapsed side-by-side on his bed.

“I should go,” Felicity sighed, though she burrowed closer to him and laid her head on his chest.

“Stay,” Oliver whispered in her ear.

She shook her head with a slight smile.

“I don’t know…” she said, knowing it wouldn’t take much to convince her.

“We’ve done it before. It was perfectly innocent,” Oliver reminded her of that first night on the island.

“This definitely isn’t innocent anymore,” Felicity said, gesturing between them.

Her hand hit his stomach and she couldn’t help but skim her fingers over his abs, proving her point.

“It’s just sleep,” Oliver said, catching her hand in his.

“What will your parents think?” Felicity asked.

“Thank God we didn’t find him naked on the staircase this time,” Oliver said in stern voice that was clearly meant to mimic his father.

Felicity couldn’t help but laugh, tilting her face up to look at him.

“Just sleep,” she warned.

“Just sleep,” he nodded before bending down to press one more soft kiss to her lips.

Then Oliver was shifting away and she let out a disappointed noise.

“I’m just turning off the lights,” he said with a laugh of his own.

She pouted anyway, only smiling again when he was back beside her, pulling the blankets up and over them as she settled back over his chest.

“Oliver?” Felicity said, nearly yawning around his name as her tiredness started to take over.

“Yeah?” he said sleepily.

She hesitated for a moment before speaking again.

“Can you act like a dick in the morning just to balance out all of this perfection? Kick me out of your bed or have my car towed out of your driveway. Something like that. I’m really starting to think that you’re a figment of my imagination.”

His laugh was a low rumble beneath her ear as she smiled sleepily.

“Yeah I’ll act like a dick in the morning,” Oliver agreed, though there was no truth to his words.

“You promise?” Felicity said.

“Cross my heart,” he said.

She hesitated for a moment before seeking out the hand that wasn’t wrapped around her back. Sure enough, his index and middle fingers were crossed instead.

“Liar,” she accused.

“See? I’m already lying to you. Clearly not a perfect figment.”

Felicity shrugged, willing to accept that.

“Goodnight Oliver,” she said, closing her eyes.

She felt him press a kiss to the top of her head.

“Goodnight Felicity.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love to hear what you think!
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>  twitter - [ogteamarrow](https://twitter.com/ogteamarrow)
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>  **PLEASE READ** : I am coming up on my birthday and I always like to do fun fandom stuff around this time. So I am taking prompts for Olicity fics on my tumblr. You can send in anything, from AU to Canon Divergence to whatever you want. Anything goes. [Just send a message to my inbox](https://dreamsofolicity.tumblr.com/ask), anonymous or not, and I'll gladly fill your prompt to the best of my ability. You don't need a tumblr account to send anonymous messages. I'll also post them here on ao3.


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